(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tire inflation device (10) for airing tubeless tires (200) on a wheel rim (100). In particular, the present invention relates to an inflation device which has an edge (14) which fits between the toe (202) and heel (201) of the tire bead (206) and on the wheel rim during airing of the tire and which is expelled from the rim upon airing of the tire.
(2) Prior Art
The prior art has shown various types of tubeless tire inflation devices. The simplest devices mount around the flange of the rim to seal the space between the sidewall of the tire and the flange during airing. Illustrative are the devices shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,081,816 to Branick; 3,596,698 to Jordan; 3,651,849 to Kaminskas and 3,974,005 to Graml. These devices tend to be caught between the flange and the sidewall of the tire and then cannot be removed from the aired tire and/or do not provide an adequate enough seal during airing of the tire. The prior art has thus used machines which air the tires such as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,805,871 to Corless; 4,183,392 to Kane; 4,245,686 to Holladay and 4,263,958 to Corless. These machines work well but are relatively very expensive to acquire and operate in comparison to the inflation devices.
The most conventional practice in airing large truck tires is to introduce gaseous ether inside the tire mounted on a wheel rim and then ignite it to force the sidewall and bead of the tire up into the flange of the wheel rim while airing the tire. This is a very dangerous practice.